The leader of the now-disbanded LulzSec hacking group directed members to attack targets in dozens of countries, including the U.K., Turkey, Brazil and Australia, even as he was serving as an FBI informant, according to a news report.

LulzSec leader Hector Xavier Monsegur, known as Sabu, directed hacktivist Jeremy Hammond to attack multiple targets, according to the report in The Daily Dot. Hammond was sentenced in November 2013 to 10 years in prison for attacks on geopolitical intelligence firm Strategic Forecasting.

Monsegur, meanwhile, was released in May after serving about seven months in prison. He had previously pleaded guilty to a 12-count indictment outlining various fraud and hacking charges. Prosecutors, in arguing for a short sentence, cited his "extraordinary" cooperation with investigators.

Monsegur directed cyberattacks against targets in 30 countries in early 2012, said The Daily Dot, citing a previously unreleased sentencing memo for Hammond.

In January 2012, Hammond penetrated two servers targeted by Monsegur, including one containing 3,520 domains, many of them in the Netherlands and Belgium, and another containing 392 Brazilian domains, according to the story.

Other targets of LulzSec, an offshoot of Anonymous, were in the Philippines, Sudan, India, Saudi Arabia and Argentina, according to the story.

Monsegur's lawyer and an FBI representative weren't immediately available for comment.

Grant Gross covers technology and telecom policy in the U.S. government for The IDG News Service. Follow Grant on Twitter at GrantGross. Grant's email address is grant_gross@idg.com.

Copyright 2018 IDG Communications. ABN 14 001 592 650. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of IDG Communications is prohibited.